TWIP #100 - Over 100 Served
Sunday, August 2, 2009 at 4:04PM 
The Show is in the feed or you can download it at Pixelcorps.TV
This week on TWiP: Nikon cameras go missing in NYC...the misuse of the term HDR...and special guest Rafael Concepcion of Layers.tv. Happy 100th Show.
Hosts: Frederick Van Johnson, Ron Brinkmann, Aaron Mahler
This episode is also brought to you by Audible.com. Over 50,000 titles. For your free Audible book, go to audiblepodcast.com/twip.
Producer: Aaron Mahler - Twitter: halfpress
Show notes by Tom Newman at fogviewphotos.com and on Twitter: fogview
Bandwidth provided by Cachefly
Intro Music by Scott Cannizzaro
HOUSEKEEPING
This is show number 100!!! Congratulations guys!!!
NEWS & DISCUSSION
Thieves make off with Nikon traffic cameras
Thieves stole $88,000 worth of Nikon DSLRs which were being used as New York City traffic enforcement cameras. Nikon D2X sitting in a box at every intersection. Thieves stole the cameras using cherry pickers. They sold the cameras to B&H as used cameras.
Ron announced that he got a new camera: Nikon CoolPix P90. This was a gift from a BackBlaze contest last month.
Ricoh unveils GR Digital III digital compact
GR Digital III premium compact camera with a fast f1.9 28 mm equivalent prime lens. 10MP sensor with larger pixel pitch than its predecessor. One of the first compact to offer a 920,000 dots VGA panel. Faster AF and a 'full-press snap' mode that jumps to a preset focus distance for fast street shooting. This is a very narrow-range camera.
Civetta challenges the Spheron Camera
HDR-capable scanning panobot. Cost is "only" 28,600 Euros. Fredrick questions if this camera is really HDR -- High Dynamic Range. Ron says that this camera does take multiple exposures and merges the images so it could be called HDR. Even shooting in RAW could be considered HDR. Aaron adds that this camera does qualify because it can capture a range of 30 F-stops.
AstroScope 9350EOS-FF adds night vision to your Canon DSLR
A lens adapter that lets your camera see in the dark. It goes in between the body and the lens. It's being sold as a astronomy tool.
Panasonic releases Lumix cams with HDR
Three new models. Aaron and Ron think this is more marketing than true HDR. It has a mode that takes the RAW image and compresses the image to give you a HDR effect.
TTG Highslide Pro announced
TTG (The Turning Gate) Highslide Gallery Pro plug-in is multi-purpose, and can be used to produce three types of standard image gallery, a client proofing selection gallery with email response options, and two types of shopping cart galleries. $40 ($25 upgrade) - most versatile Lightroom Gallery plug-in available.
PHOTO ASSIGNMENT & POLL
Old Poll: For your next DSLR purchase, will you "Hold" and stick with your current brand or will you "Fold" and switch to a different brand? 94% will Hold and 6% will Fold.
Aaron and Frederick will hold, but Ron may switch at some point. He's looking at the low-light capability of the Nikon D700.
New Poll: How many lenses do you own? (Thanks to Randy Brown for poll ideas for the next few weeks.)
INTERVIEW -- Rafael Concepcion of Layers.tv.
RC works with the Layers TV team.
Frederick: Can you talk about your background and what you do at the National Association of Photoshop Professionals (NAPP)?
RC: NAPP is involved in all types of training with Photoshop. There is one show that they run called Photoshop User's TV, run by Scott Kelby and others. A couple years back I met up with Scott and he said that he wanted to add to the team and diversify and start doing different types of things. My background is photography but most of the stuff I was doing was with Photoshop and the web. We thought it was a good time to add how to use Photoshop to interact with the web. That's how it started. I'm the jack of all trades. This evolved into doing Layers TV.
Frederick: Are you the Executive Producer of Layers TV?
RC: It's a co-hosted show. You have Cory Barker and myself doing the show and supplying content.
Frederick: Is the show streamed online or is it a podcast?
RC: It's a podcast that runs every Wednesday. You can watch it on Layersmagazine.com or download it on iTunes.
Frederick: It's part of the Layers universe. How does it interweave with the print magazine?
RC: The magazine covers all the Adobe apps. Layersmagazine is where you go for video content. Plus we have the Layersmagazine blog.
Frederick: Speaking of iPhone, what is your favorite application?
RC: My favorite one is all of them. I don't have an iPhone but I have a iPod Touch. It's a carrier thing. Down in Tampa, ATT service is not there yet.
Frederick: Lets talk about the event that is coming up this weekend (July 18) -- World Wide Photowalk. (Editor's note: This interview was recorded earlier and the Photowalk has since past.)
RC: It's a social event. You go walking around taking pictures and afterward you go some place and show your pictures around. There 900 photo walks happening around the world.
Frederick: We talk a lot on TWIP about how photography has changed. Digital photography gives you the immediate feedback and sharing.
RC: When you went out and shot with 36 exposure (film) you would write down the f-stop and speed of each frame. When you got back the images, it would be so distant that you would forget what you saw. You don't have this problem with digital.
Frederick: It takes a long time to master photography to know what f-stop and speed that's required for a shot.
RC: You develop that database in your head. One master is Joe McNally. It takes time, practice, and experience.
Frederick: What gear do you shoot with:
RC: I shoot with Nikon D700, 24-70 F2.8, three SB800, two SB900. I'm a big fan of the SB800/900s.
Frederick: Here's a question for you. A lot of photographers get caught up in the "I got to have this." Is it a conscious decision not have do that?
RC: I love my gear but I decided years ago to spend my time focusing on one body or one lens instead of chasing the latest thing. The one thing that has grown in my bag is the SB800/900s. I like to think that necessity brings it instead of a press release.
Frederick: I like to call that the McNally effect. You can't have too many SB900s.
Frederick: The next leg of that is post production. What do you use?
RC: I use Lightroom.
Frederick: In terms of overall photography, what advice would you give for someone who wants to move their photography to the next level?
RC: The person jumping into photography now has an amazing amount of resources online to be able to do stuff. Go out and look at the new school of photographers online. Master exposure, master your shutter speed, master your aperture, master how to control all those elements. Then go over to the Strobist and learn how to use the flash. Everything is available to you online.
Frederick: Thank you and where can we found more about you?
RC: You can find me at layersmagazine.com and Twitter.com/layerstv_rc
LISTENER QUESTIONS
Q: Listener Royce Kokami writes: Hi Fellas, I'm not too knowledgeable about the naming conventions of Nikon lenses, so I was wondering if you could enlighten me. For example what does the "D", "ED", "IF-ED", etc mean at the end of the lens? I appreciate any help if possible. Thank you and have a great day.
A: Frederick answers: I found the answer at Nikon Lens Glossary page. The "D" means distance information. You can read more at the above link.
Q: Listener Daniel Avila writes: I was wondering if renting multiple camera bodies such as Nikon D90's is a good idea. I have 1 body and that's a Nikon D60 with 3 lens (18-55mm kit lens, 50mm 1.8, and 70-200 2.8) I want to rent a 14-24mm 2.8, 24-70 mm 2.8 and 2 Nikon D90 bodies to have a lens attached to each body and have all lenses ready to go when needed. I'm not made of money so renting all of that gear will definitely break the bank a bit sorta like the 70-200mm lens did. Is it better to rent 2 bodies to have focal lengths 14-200mm covered at all times or just not rent the 2 bodies and just switch lenses when needed? I don't know what situations i'll come across so I don't know how often I'll have to switch lenses and by the time I switch the lens the opportune moment to photograph may disappear.
A: Aaron answers: I own two bodies and when I'm shooting events I carry one with 24 to 70 mm and the other 70 to 200 mm. Two bodies is all I want to deal with. The other reason I carry two bodies is in case my main camera goes down and I'm on a commercial shoot. Frederick adds that he agrees with that and does the same thing. 24 to 200 mm is the ideal range with two camera bodies. Ron just uses one body plus his point and shoot camera.
Q: Listener Dave DeBisschop writes: I'm interested in photographing the Perseids meteor shower which peak August 12-13. Having never done this before can you offer any tips to ensure the greatest likelihood of successfully capturing something special?
A: Ron answers: It's named that way because the showers come from the Perseids constellation so knowing the direction of the showers is number one. Second thing is that these meteors are bight in the sky and come along every few minutes so you need long exposure (a couple of minutes). Set up your camera on a tripod. You should figure out a head of time what your exposure should be. Most cameras can only hold the shutter open for a maximum of 30 seconds on their own so you need some sort of external shutter release, timer, or manually hold it open. Most of these shots look boring so you may want to frame it with some trees or buildings to make the shot a little more interesting. Aaron added that if you are using a DSLR, look for "bulb" and mirror lock modes.
Q: Listener Ryan Loucks writes: I found out recently that I'll be traveling to Kyoto, Japan for work later this fall. Of course, my first thought is what camera stores can I visit when I'm there. Alex, do you have any tips for camera shopping while in Japan (which stores to visit, whether bargaining is expected, etc)? Specifically, I'm a Canon DSLR shooter but I've been on the lookout for a $429 Panasonic LX-3 for several months.
A: Frederick answers: If you are going to a camera store in Japan, you will not be bargaining. You will walk away with the price they quote you. As far as a camera store, I would recommend Yodobashi Camera outlets in and around Tokyo. The store I went too had six or seven levels. Ron asks if it really is cheaper to buy it in Japan? (Probably not.) If you buy a camera, the manual may be in Japanese instead of English. What you may find is odd type accessories in these stores.
PICKS OF THE WEEK
* Frederick - Comes from Bruce Clark (show notes writer)... http://www.mpixpro.com. Bruce is at www.twitter.com/bruceclarke on twitter
* Ron - Abandoned Places Blog: http://community.livejournal.com/abandonedplaces
* Aaron - Handful of Apollo 11 Remberances: Big Picture Blog, Pixcetera Multimedia Presentation and Restored Mission Footage at NASA
WRAP UP
Ron can be found at http://digitalcomposting.wordpress.com and via Twitter: RonBrinkmann
Frederick can be found at http://www.frederickvan.com and via Twitter: Frederickvan
Aaron can be found at http://halfpress.com and via Twitter: halfpress
To share your suggestions and questions go to www.twiplog.com
Story ideas and other items of webly interest can be submitted via the TWiP Ideas Del.icio.us bookmarks
Share photos with your fellow TWiP listeners through the TWiP Flickr Feed
Submit your photos for "ruthless compassion" through our TWiP critiques forum.
Show notes provide by Tom Newman of Fogview Photos and via Twitter: Fogview
Reader Comments (2)
I have been a listener since episode number 1. Every week I look forward to the podcast. I think more about my photography and subsequently make more images now. You guys and occasionally gals are great to listen to. I don't know what it is about your style, but whatever it is, it makes me feel like I'm in the same room listening to friends talk about there photography. I hope the podcast lasts a very long time. Thank you
Vern Snow
I'd like to add/correct some things to Ron's reply about the Perseid Meteor Shower, if I may.
The Perseid meteor shower for 2009 peaks in the morning hours of Wednesday, August 12th. However, moonlight will interfere, as the moon rises just before midnight.
This is called the “Perseid” meteor shower because, from our view, the meteors seem to come from the area in the sky which includes the constellation Perseus. This constellation rises around 11.00pm in the northeast and will be high in the northern skies all night.
If it’s a good shower, you might get to see sixty meteors an hour.
What you need to observe them:
Darkest skies possible. If you can, get as far away from the city (and any lights) as you are able.
Despite it being summer, it gets chilly late at night. Bring a jacket, blanket, etc.
Bug spray. Skeeters love to bite.
You can either bring a reclining lawn chair or lay on the ground, it’s your call.
(We always bring some tunes, plus snacks and drinks).
Bring a red-filtered flashlight. The red light won’t ruin your night vision like a white-light will. You want your pupils to be as dilated as possible to see as much of the sky as you can.
Some photography tips (since this IS the topic):
Use a semi wide-angle lens. Not too wide, because the meteors will look really tiny in your images. If you have a crop-sensor camera, nothing wider than 28-35mm.
Use manual focus, and make sure you are focused on the stars. That means infinity. Now, I’ve found that lenses for DLSR’s have a “range” for infinity focus. Just turning the focus ring all the way to the infinity stop won’t work. If you can, focus on a radio tower or some other bright objects far away. If you can focus on a star, that’s even better (Live View works great with this). Take a few shots and look at the image on your LCD screen, zooming up to see if the stars are pinpoints.
Because the stars move across the sky during the night, you will get star trails. Keep you exposures to around 5 to 10 minutes or so. This means you will more than likely need a remote release. :)
Point your camera in the general area towards the north-northeastern sky. As the night goes on, you might want to shift where it is pointed. The closer you are pointed to the radiant (where the meteors appear to emanate from) the shorter the meteor trails. Also, if you notice an area where meteors are more frequent, you can point there. Try different areas of the sky.
Start with an ISO of 400. If you can, and your camera gives good results, you can boost it to 800, but I wouldn't go any higher.
Shoot as close to wide-open as you can. I would suggest ½ stop smaller than your widest aperture. Many Perseids are faint, and you need to wide-open aperture. Yeha, there are really bright ones as well (I saw a really bright one last night while imaging the moon).
If you get one or two going through the field of view (you think), just stop the exposure and start a new one.
Use NR at your discretion. Remember, if you take a 10 minute shot, you will get a 10 minute NR exposure as well, so you’ve wasted 10 minutes. You can always do your noise reduction during post processing.
Watch out for dew! Depending on how much humidity is in the air, your lens will dew/fog up. Have some way to clean off the lens.
Make sure your batteries are fully charged.
Have a nice sturdy tripod.